The city of Franklin is launching an anti-litter campaign in response to some complaints from citizens about litter in the city.
The campaign to residents and visitors features a southern flair with humorous messages to grab people’s attention.
One ad reads, “Bless your heart is a southern expression. Littering ain’t.”
Another ad says, “Y’all ain’t right is a southern expression. Litter ain’t.”
The graphics show retro photos of southern women with the saying in a word bubble, and also a modern-day photo of litter or someone littering.
The advertisement will be featured as a moving billboard on Franklin Sanitation trucks and social media and feature the hashtag #stayclassynottrashyfranklin. The campaign was created by the City’s Communications team.
The Franklin Sustainability Commission took on the task of researching the City’s litter problem and worked with Keep Williamson Beautiful and research from the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT).
According to TDOT the state spends $15 million on litter pick up every year on state roads and 28 percent of litter in Tennessee is classified as intentional litter, meaning it’s thrown right out of vehicle windows. The research also discovered that 72 percent of litter in the state is considered negligent litter, which includes vehicle debris and trash flying out of uncovered pickup truck beds. The goal of the Franklin campaign is to prevent litter before it happens and to promote awareness and volunteer clean-ups.
The City is targeting contractors as well as residents and visitors. Sustainability commission members recently completed a litter survey of Franklin. The Commission rated 62 street segments throughout the City on a scale of 0 to 4 with 0 being no debris and 4 being heavily littered. Franklin’s overall average was 1.5. The following segments contained the most observed litter:
-Mack Hatcher between Columbia Pike and South Royal Oaks Boulevard
-Highway 96 West between Carlisle Lane and Westhaven
-Spencer Creek Road between Fieldstone Parkway and Mack Hatcher Parkway
-Lewisburg Pike between the railroad tracks and Mack Hatcher Parkway
-Murfreesboro Road between I-65 and Clovercroft Road.
“We may not have a huge litter problem in the city now, but we want to bring awareness now as the city is growing,” City Administrator Eric Stuckey said. “We hope this campaign catches people’s attention and gives a fun positive message to not litter.”
The campaign to local contractors will feature signage at construction sites and the Franklin Sanitation drop-off station, as well as educational materials at the City’s Building and Neighborhood Services Department. For more information on the campaign go to www.franklintn.gov/litterprevention.
